ED2016/1

March 2016

SOME THOUGHTS ON ENROLMENTS AND ASSOCIATED MATTERS

The Private Schools’Conditional Integration Act affords Integrated Schools a unique and vitalplace in the New Zealand school system. We must value and protect this place.

Preference status and Enrolment practices are a very public and critical element of the Special Character of our Schools. We should demonstrate exemplary practice, ensuring that we enrol those for whom the School was founded and be above reproach in our policies and procedures.

While the Ministry of Education does monitor Integrated Schools enrolment practices (generally through the administration of Enrolment Schemes and managing parental concerns) it is incumbent upon us to quality control our own work. It is far better to be aware of the appropriate legislation and thereby avoid disgruntled parents and adverse media reports.

Central to enrolment processes are:

  1. The Proprietor determines preferential status.
  2. The Board designs and operates the enrolment scheme. State Integrated schools are not as regulated as State schools in this area.

Here are some questions to assist you in your quality control

  1. Do the key players in your school understand the correct enrolment process and respective roles?
  2. Are the Proprietors clearly explaining and operating the Preference process?Is it clear and transparent to all (including parent applicants) what evidence will be collected to determine preference? Would that procedure stand up to the scrutiny of legal action?Do Proprietor appointees to the Board have a clear role to play?
  3. Does the school have a detailed working knowledge of the legislative and regulatory framework?There are some examples in this document, but your source documents should be the relevant Acts and supplementary agreements.
  4. What delegation/discretion does the Principal, via the Board, have in interpreting/implementing enrolment procedures? How is this monitored? Does the Board have an enrolment policy?
  5. Are advertising and other communications material clear and current? What processes does the School have in place to induct parents into the school’s Special Character? How do they transition from being an enrolled parent to a partner parent?
  6. Do the School and Proprietor have a robust complaints/concerns policy related to enrolments? Are enrolment records compliant with legislation and regulation?
  7. Are advertising and other communications material clear and current?
  8. Are your requests for Dues, Fees and Donations legal? Parents are vulnerable and liable to agree to school requests that are not legal. Is the school clear on what charges can be made to parents?
  9. Do you know where to go to take advice on any of these matters? AISNZ are here to help.

Key points to consider

The Private Schools Conditional Integration Act 1975 read in conjunction with the Education Act is the key legislation for Integrated Schools. However, it is also vital that you have a working knowledge of your school’s own Integration Agreement and all supplementary agreements.

  1. Section 29 of the PSCIA makes it clear that Preference of Enrolment is given to parents of the child, not the child.

Private Schools’ Conditional Integration Act 1975 Part 5. Provisions relating to the enrolment, conditions of attendance, and instruction of pupils at an integrated school

29 Preference of enrolment

(1)Parents who have a particular or general philosophical or religious connection with an integrated school shall have preference of enrolment for their children at the school.

(2)Subject to the provisions of subsection (1), no prospective pupil shall be refused enrolment at an integrated school on the grounds of religion, race, socio-economic background, or lack of willingness of the parent to make financial contributions to the school.

  1. The Proprietor (not the Board or Principal) has an absolute right under Section 3 of the Act to determine the criteria to be used in making a judgement on a parent’s claim for preference.

Private Schools Conditional Integration Act 1975 Part 3. Preservation of special character of an integrated school

(1) An integrated school shall on integration continue to have the right to reflect through its teaching and conduct the education with a special character provided by it.

(2) Integration shall not jeopardise the special character of an integrated school.

(3) The proprietor of an integrated school shall, subject to the provisions of the integration agreement.

(a) continue to have the responsibility to supervise the maintenance and preservation of the education with a special character provided by the school:

(b) continue to have the right to determine from time to time what is necessary to preserve and safeguard the special character of the education provided by the school and described in the integration agreement.

(4) If in the opinion of a proprietor the special character of the school as defined and described in the integration agreement has been or is likely to be jeopardised, or the education with a special character provided by the school as defined and described in the integration agreement is no longer preserved and safeguarded, he may invoke the powers conferred upon him by this Act.

  1. Preference criteria cannot be legitimately ranked – a parent is either granted preference or not. There cannot be degrees of preference.
  1. Preference is not the same as Enrolment.

The Act makes it clear that the granting of preference is a Proprietor responsibility. It is the step prior to enrolment, which is the responsibility of the Board of Trustees and often delegated to the Principal. It is prudent for these two elements to be kept separate. Separation ensures the Principal and Board of Trustees cannot subsequently be accused of influencing the preference decision. One solution is for a Proprietor’s committee( which may include Proprietor Appointees to the Board ) or a designated person working on behalf of the Proprietor to assess a parent’s claim of preference.

  1. Human Rights – Enrolment, Special Character and Preference

There is a greater willingness for parents to resort to litigation if they feel the school has treated them unfairly. Section 58 provides an exception for a special character school.

Human Rights Act 1993 Discrimination in access to educational establishments

57 Educational establishments

(1) It shall be unlawful for an educational establishment, or the authority responsible for the control of an educational establishment, or any person concerned in the management of an educational establishment or in teaching at an educational establishment.

(a) to refuse or fail to admit a person as a pupil or student; or

(b) to admit a person as a pupil or a student on less favourable terms and conditions than would otherwise be made available; or

(c) to deny or restrict access to any benefits or services provided

by the establishment; or

(d) to exclude a person as a pupil or a student or subject him or her to any other detriment,

by reason of any of the prohibited grounds of discrimination.

58 Exceptions in relation to establishments for particular groups

(1)An educational establishment maintained wholly or principally for students of one sex, race, or religious belief, or for students with a particular disability, or for students in a particular age group, or the authority responsible for the control of any such establishment, does not commit a breach of section 57 by refusing to admit students of a different sex, race, or religious belief, or students not having that disability or not being in that age group.

For more information

Contact or

Web ( PSCIA Part 5 , Section 29 ))

(Part 8)